Public Transport: Rural Areas

Patrick Cormack: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what grants his Department and its predecessor provided to subsidise public transport in rural areas in England in  (a) 2001,  (b) 2005 and  (c) 2008; and if he will make a statement.

Paul Clark: The annual totals of grants paid to local authorities under the rural bus subsidy grant (RBSG) and rural bus challenge (RBC) schemes for the relevant financial years are shown in the following table.
	
		
			  £ million 
			   RBSG  RBC 
			 2001-02 41.2 12.1 
			 2005-06 53.0 12.3 
			 2008-09(1) (2)157.0 (3)2.0 
			 (1) Paid to local authorities as part of their area-based grant. (2) Allocation. (3) Estimated. 
		
	
	In addition, local authorities support rural transport services using funds from the unhypothecated revenue support grant and local bus service operators, including those in rural areas, receive bus service operators grant from this Department.
	Rural railways are funded as part of franchises covering both rural and urban areas or by grants to Network Rail which operates both rural and non rural railway. No separate figures are available for rural rail support.

Railway Stations: Parking

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will investigate car parking charge increases which have taken place over the last three years at railway station car parks; and if he will make a statement.

Paul Clark: There are no plans to investigate increases in station car parking charges which are a matter either for Network Rail at its managed stations or for the relevant train operating company at the franchised stations.